On Windows 10, every account receives a set of default folders that allows users to save and organize their personal documents, pictures, downloads, and other files separately from other accounts.
These folders can grow large over time, so if you have a device with limited storage moving the default folders to another location (such as an external hard drive) helps prevent running out of space on the main system drive and can help free up space you can use to install other apps, and it improves the performance.
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In this Windows 10 guide, we walk you through the easy steps to migrate your account default folders to a secondary hard drive or partition.
How to move default user folders to a new location
In order to relocate the default user account folders to a new location on Windows 10, do the following:
Once you complete these steps, the folder will move to the new location with its content and settings. Ideally, you want to move all the default folders you actively use to save files for consistency, repeating steps No. 7 through 14.
How To Move Multiple Documents Into A Folder
You can always revert the changes using the Restore Default button in the Location tab in the 'Properties' for each folder.
Although relocating the user's default folders one by one means extra steps, we do not recommend moving the main account folder as it may cause unexpected problems.
Changing the default save location on apps
The only caveat for moving user folders to a new location is that it'll not change the default save location for certain applications. For example, if you use Microsoft Edge, the browser will continue to look for the old path to save files, and it'll create a new Downloads folder automatically if it's not available.
You can prevent this from happening by changing the default location for the application. For example, in Microsoft Edge, you can fix this issue, using these steps:
After completing these steps, Microsoft Edge will save future files in the new folder location.
Some applications like Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox will automatically detect and reflect the changes automatically. You can always check if your web browser is using the correct path by going to
chrome://settings/downloads on Chrome, or going to about:preferences#general on Firefox.
This guide is focused on Windows 10, but the ability to move user folders to another location has been available for a long time, which means that you can also use the same instructions on Windows 8.1 and Windows 7.
More Windows 10 resources
For more helpful articles, coverage, and answers to common questions about Windows 10, visit the following resources:
How to Move Your Documents Folder Location in Windows 10 By default, Windows stores your personal Documents folder in your account's %UserProfile% folder (ex: 'C:UsersBrink'). You can change where files in this Documents folder are stored to another place on the hard drive, another drive, or another computer on the network. This tutorial will show you how to move the default location of your Documents folder to where you want in Windows 10. It is highly recommended to create a system image backup first to make it easy to undo if you were to make a mistake in the steps below. Here's How: 1. If you currently have your Documents folder protected by OneDrive, then you will need to temporarily turn off OneDrive protection for this folder until after you move it. 2. If you haven't already, you will need to create a new folder named Documents at the location (ex: 'E:' ) you want to move your personal Documents folder to. (see screenshot below) 3. Open This PC in File Explorer (Win+E), right click on your Documents folder, and click/tap on Properties. (see screenshot below) If you don't see the Documents folder in This PC, then you can also click/tap on the icon in the address bar of File Explorer, type shell:Personal into the address bar, and press Enter to open your Documents folder no matter where it may be located. You can then right click or press and hold on an empty area in your Documents folder, and click/tap on Properties. 4. Click/tap on the Location tab, and click/tap on the Move button. (see screenshot below) 5. Browse to and select the Documents folder at the location (ex: 'E:Documents' ) from step 2, and click/tap on Select Folder. (see screenshot below) 6. Click/tap on OK to apply. (see screenshot below) 7. Click/tap on Yes to move all the files from the old location to the new location. (see screenshot below) 8. Your personal Documents folder and all of its contents will now be moved to the new location (ex: 'E:Documents' ). (see screenshot below) That's it, Shawn
Bill Verner asked for the easiest way to delete a group of files. I offer more information than he asked for.
Even the most experienced Windows veterans have holes in their knowledge of the operating system—tricks they forgot or never learned. I’m using Bill’s question to go over some basics that even experienced readers may find useful as a refresher course.
[Email your tech questions to [email protected].]
Before you can copy, move, or delete multiple files, you need to select them. How you select them depends on what they have in common. Once selected, the rest is easy.
To select everything in the current folder, press Ctrl-A.
To select a contiguous block of files, click the first file in the block. Then hold down the Shift key as you click the last file in the block. This will select not only those two files, but everything in between.
If the files are scattered throughout the folder, you may be able to make them contiguous by grouping them. For instance, if you want to grab all of your .png files, right-click a blank spot in the folder window and select Group by>Type. If you want all of the files altered last week, select Group by>Date (date last modified). You can select Group by>More for additional options.
Once you’ve grouped the files, click the line above your desired group to select all of its files.
Sometimes the files you want just can’t be grouped together. Luckily, you have two ways to select non-contiguous files:
The two-handed approach: Click one file. Then hold down Ctrl while you click each additional desired file.
The one-handed approach: Point to a file, and a checkbox will appear to the upper-left of the icon or thumbnail. Check it. Then check the boxes for other desired files.
I’m guessing that you know what happens to the selected files when you hit Delete. But let’s cover the consequences of dragging and dropping your files.
Online20192016, 20132010, 2007Help me choose
Copy
Notes:
Move
Notes:
Copy
Notes:
Move
Note: When you use Move to, the history of the document is copied to the new destination. For more info on versioning, see Enable and configure versioning for a list or library
Copy a file to a different library in SharePoint Server 2016 or SharePoint Server 2013
SharePoint Server 2016 and 2013 provide the Send to option for copying to another library or location. Send to copies one file at a time to another library. Send to doesn't provide the option to copy folders. The destination copy will have a connection to the original file.
Note:Send to copies the published version of a document. For more info on versions, see How does versioning work in a list or library?.
Update copies from the Manage Copies page in SharePoint Server 2016 or SharePoint Server 2013
If a file was copied to one or more different libraries, you can update all of the different copies from one location on the Manage Copies page, which is accessible from any copy of an item.
Change the settings for a copy to make it prompt for updates in SharePoint Server 2016 or SharePoint Server 2013
If you created a copy of a file by using the Send To command and you did not choose to be prompted for updates, this copy cannot receive updates from the source file. You can change this setting and make the copy available for updates.
Unlink a copy from its source, and delete it in SharePoint Server 2016 or SharePoint Server 2013
If you want to completely delete an item that is a copy of another item, first you must ensure that this item is removed from the source file's list of items to update. Otherwise, the item may be recreated whenever someone chooses to update any existing copies of the source file. It is also recommended that you unlink the copy from its source file. After you have completely unlinked the source file and its copy, you can delete the copy.
Use the Send To command in SharePoint Server 2010 or SharePoint Server 2007
When a file is copied using Send To, the copy maintains a relationship with its source file, and you can choose to update this copy with any changes that are made to the source file. Additionally, if the copy and its source file share common columns or fields, these columns or fields are also updated when the copy is updated.
The Send to command makes it easier to maintain files across libraries and sites in an organization because when files are copied by using the Send To command, the server tracks the relationship between the source file and all of its copies. Users can view and manage all copies of an item centrally from the Manage Copies page, where they can see which copies prompt for updates, change update settings for copies, update the copies, or create new copies.
Notes:
Copy a file to a predefined destination in SharePoint Server 2010 or SharePoint Server 2007
If a Send To destination is already specified for your library, you can copy files from this library to another library by using the Send To command.
Copy a file to a destination that you specify in SharePoint Server 2010 or SharePoint Server 2007
You can use the Send To command to copy a file to a library that you specify. You must have the Contribute permission level for the library to which you want to copy the document.
Updating copies of a file in SharePoint Server 2010 or SharePoint Server 2007
There are two ways that you can update copies of an item:
Update copies from the source file
Update copies from the Manage Copies page in SharePoint Server 2010 or SharePoint Server 2007
If a file was copied to one or more different libraries, you can update all of the different copies from one location on the Manage Copies page, which is accessible from any copy of an item.
Change the settings for a copy to make it prompt for updates in SharePoint Server 2010 or SharePoint Server 2007
If you created a copy of a file by using the Send To command and you did not choose to be prompted for updates, this copy cannot receive updates from the source file. You can change this setting and make the copy available for updates.
Unlink and delete a copy in SharePoint Server 2010 or SharePoint Server 2007
If you want to completely delete an item that is a copy of another item, first you must ensure that this item is removed from the source file's list of items to update. Otherwise, the item may be recreated whenever someone chooses to update any existing copies of the source file. It is also recommended that you unlink the copy from its source file. After you have completely unlinked the source file and its copy, you can delete the copy.
If you're not sure which version of SharePoint you're using, see Which version of SharePoint am I using?.
There are several methods available to move computer files and folders (directories) from one source to another. Click one of the links below to view steps relating to the operating system you need help with, or scroll down to review them all.
Note
When moving files or folders, you are going to have only one copy of the files moved. If you want more than one copy of the files, you should copy the files and not move them.
How to move files in Windows
In Windows, you can move files using several method. You can drag-and-drop, cut and paste, or use the 'Move to Folder..' command. Below are the all of the steps on how you can move files in Windows. Choose the option that works best for you.
Tip
You can also select multiple files and move multiple files at once using any of the steps below.
Cut and paste
To cut and paste a file, select the file you want to move, right-click on the highlighted file, and then select Cut. Browse to the folder you would like to move the file to, right-click in the folder, and select Paste to move the file to that folder.
Alternatively, you can click Edit from the File Menu, select Cut to cut the files, browse to where you want to move the files, then select Edit and Paste in the File menu.
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Finally, you can also use shortcut keys to cut and paste files. Select the files you want to cut, then press the shortcut key Ctrl+X to cut the files. 'Cutting' the files is like cutting text in a document: it moves the files to a temporary 'clipboard' until you 'paste' them somewhere. Navigate to the destination folder and press the shortcut key Ctrl+V to paste the files. The files are now in your destination folder.
Drag-and-drop
Highlight the files you want to move, click with your right mouse button and while continuing to hold down the right mouse button drag-and-drop the files to where you want to move them. When you release the mouse button, you'll be given a menu similar to the example shown in the picture. Select the Move here option to move the files.
Note
For drag-and-drop to work, you'll need to be able to see the window of where you are moving the files.
Use 'move to folder'
To use the 'Move to Folder..' command, select the file by clicking on the file name. Click on the Edit menu near the top left of the window and click the Move to Folder option. A new window will be shown that allow you to browse to the folder where you would like to move the file, then click the Move button to move the file to that folder.
If you are using Windows 8, once the files are selected the Move to option is shown under the Home tab.
How to move files in the Windows command line (MS-DOS)
In the Windows command line and MS-DOS, you can move files using the move command. For example, if you want to move a file named 'stats.doc' to the 'c:statistics' folder, you would type the following command, then press the Enter key.
If you'd like to move multiple files, you can separate the file names with a comma, as in the following command.
In the next example, we are moving the file 'example.doc' to the D: drive.
You can also move multiple files by using wildcards. In the example below, the move command is moving all files that have the '.doc' file extension to the 'c:statistics' directory.
Using the move command, you can also move a directory (folder). In the example below, the move command is moving the directory 'example' in the current directory to another directory called 'new' that is also in the current directory.
Tip
If you want to move a directory or file into a different directory, you need to specify the full path.
How to move files in macOS
There are several ways to move files in macOS.
Drag-and-drop
In the macOS Finder, you can drag-and-drop one or more file icons, moving them from one folder to another. To drag-and-drop a file, highlight the files you want to move. Click any of them, and before you release the mouse button, move the mouse cursor until it is over the destination folder. Release the mouse button to move the files to this location.
Keyboard shortcut
You can also move files using keyboard shortcuts by following the steps below.
Terminal
To move files in the Terminal command line, use the mv command.
How to move files in Linux
In Linux, using the command shell, you can move files or directories with the mv command. For example, if you wanted to move a file named 'myfile.txt' to the folder named 'backup,' you would type the following command.
For more information, see our mv command reference.
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